PT-76

PT-76
A PT-76 at the Verkhnyaya Pyshma Tank Museum, 2012
Type	Amphibious light tank
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1951–present
Production history
Designer	N. Shashmurin and Zh.Y. Kotin
Designed	1949–1951
Manufacturer	VTZ, Kirov Factory
Produced	1951–1969 (chassis maybe still produced)
No. built	Around 12,000[1] . (Other sources indicate 5000 were built. See footnote 3).
Specifications (PT-76 model 1)
Mass	14.6 t (16.1 short tons; 14.4 long tons)
Length	7.63 m (25 ft) (gun forward) 6.91 m (22 ft 8 in) (hull)
Width	3.15 m (10 ft 4 in)
Height	2.325 m (7 ft 7.5 in)
Crew	3 (driver, commander/gunner, loader)
Armour	RHAe
Main armament	76.2 mm D-56T rifled tank gun (40 rds.)
Secondary armament	7.62 mm SGMT coax machine gun (1,000 rds.) or 7.62 mm PKT machine gun coax machine gun (1,000 rds) since 1967
Engine	19.1L 6 cylinder inline diesel 180 kilowatts (240 hp)
Power/weight	12.3 kW/t
Suspension	torsion-bar
Ground clearance	370 mm (14.6 in)
Fuel capacity	250 L (55 imp gal; 66 US gal)
Operational range	370–400 km (230–250 mi) 480–510 km (300–320 mi) with external fuel
Maximum speed	44 km/h (27 mph) on road, 10.2 km/h (6.3 mph) swimming

The PT-76 is a Soviet amphibious light tank that was introduced in the early 1950s and soon became the standard reconnaissance tank of the Soviet Army and the other Warsaw Pact armed forces. It was widely exported to other friendly states, like India, Indonesia, Iraq, Syria, North Korea and North Vietnam.

The tank's full name is Floating Tank–76 (плавающий танк, plavayushchiy tank, or ПТ-76). 76 stands for the caliber of the main armament: the 76.2 mm D-56T series rifled tank gun.

The PT-76 is used in the reconnaissance and fire-support roles. Its chassis served as the basis for a number of other vehicle designs, many of them amphibious, including the BTR-50 armored personnel carrier, the ZSU-23-4 self-propelled antiaircraft gun, the ASU-85 airborne self-propelled gun and the 2K12 Kub anti-aircraft missile launch vehicle.